One common charge made against those who seek to restrict or ban Thrillcraft is that they are elitist. But one has to keep in mind who is the real elitist. The majority of Americans when they leave their cars to visit the public lands do so on foot or on other non-motorized equipment like canoes, skis and snowshoes.

The impacts of human powered access on other people are minimal. A valley can have a dozen hikers or cross country skiers in it without any of them being aware of the other’s presence. But all of them would know in an instance if a single snowmobile or ATV roared up the valley. The noise alone would alert them to the presence of the machine. Several studies have shown that the majority of Thrillcraft users are not bothered by the presence of hikers or other non-motorized users. However the opposite is not true for non-motorized users nearly all of whom are impacted by the presence of Thrillcraft.

A pair of hiking boots is all that is required to access our public lands. Compared to the cost of a snowmobile or an ATV which can run into the thousands of dollars, not to mention the big trucks and trailers to haul them, hiking shoes, snowshoes or skis are a relatively inexpensive cost of admission.